Negative consequences of the art business need to be watched

By Chandra Johan

JAKARTA (JP): The art business involving galleries, artists and art lovers is relatively new to Indonesia. It developed together with an art "boom" at the end of the 1980s up to the middle of the 1990s. But the boom just touched one category, modern painting, while other categories have not yet enjoyed the boom.

Since then, sales and purchases of modern paintings have increased, commercial galleries have sprung up, exhibitions have expanded and prices of paintings have soared.

Now, with the boom lessening, another phenomenon appears amid the crisis: new galleries are mushrooming in Jakarta, Bandung and Yogyakarta.

In Jakarta, about 10 galleries have opened over the past six months. Major galleries include Nomad Gallery, Fokus Gallery, Anton Gallery, Inggil Gallery, Milenium Gallery, 678 Gallery, Pendopo Gallery and Waroeng Kemang Gallery. This shows that the Indonesian art world is entering a new phase amid the crisis.

However, amid the development of these places of art appreciation, a number of side effects have popped up. The art world is no longer being monopolized by academics, as could be seen in the 1970s and the 1980s.

Now, when we attend an exhibition outside a gallery (hotels, office buildings or restaurant-galleries) we are witness to a growing number of artist wanna-bes. Some come from various professions (designer, celebrity, architect and even bankers), but a majority are female officials or businesswomen who use their leisure time to paint and draw.

There are several factors why they choose this field to fill their spare time. But it is clear the world of art is still considered a prestigious and elitist arena. For this reason, the wives of officials and rich businessmen are ready to pay expensive teachers who are willing to give private painting tuition in their homes. Also, for all this, they are ready to pay fees to organizers who are capable of holding exhibitions for their work, the themes of which revolve around flowers, sceneries, women or dancers; standard objects which can be found in standard painting books.

Organizers who do not want to suffer losses will charge costs first and relatively big, between Rp 200,000 and Rp 500,000 per person, and take between 20 percent and 30 percent from each sale. Prices for these paintings are not less than the prices of paintings by professional painters who already have a good name; starting from Rp 2 million to more than Rp 10 million, with sizes not more than one-meter square.

For the organizer, it is really not too difficult to exhibit the artists' works. They will have lobbied the person in charge of a building to minimize costs. Guest lists or buyer lists can generally be obtained from participants who already have a lobby and access to upper circles of society. There may be participants who know beforehand that their paintings will be bought and by whom.

In some cases, they invite a well-known government official or businessman. The important thing is that organizers must be smart, giving the exhibition a title with a noble theme, like Beauty in Diversity, Quest for Cultural Values or Flower Nuances. The aim to be reached is to sell as many paintings as possible.

Another capitalist-artist business relationship is the so- called "foster parents system" and "salary system". While this sounds strange for a world of creativity, it is considered reasonable.

In the foster parents system the gallery gives capital to a few talented artists. The gallery then sells their works at a price it decides. There are galleries which set the price 300 percent higher than the price set by the artist.

For example, the gallery buys the painting from the artist at Rp 2 million, then sells it for Rp 4 million or more. The gallery is usually well-versed in selecting saleable artwork. If it finds the work of a certain painter is saleable, then it will try to seal a contract with the artist.

In the salary system, the gallery pays the artists a salary, with a requirement that they must produce as many pieces as possible for the gallery and then the gallery will choose from those works. With, say, a Rp 2 million monthly salary, the artist doesn't have to bother about how to make the ends meet. All he has to do is create as many as possible, like a machine.

According to Jais Hadiana, owner of Darga Gallery in Bali, there are galleries which apply sales mechanism ala mafia. In this case, the gallery cooperates with the buyer of a company which needs paintings for its building.

The company will buy a great number of paintings at a price lower than the standard price.

For example, a painting by an artist who is gaining a reputation costs Rp 15 million. The painter might get only Rp 5 million or less, while the remainder goes to the buyer (on behalf of the company) and to the gallery. If the official buys 10 paintings, he will rake in Rp 100 million in profit.

Whether he gives a certain percentage to the gallery is an arrangement made behind the scenes.

The above phenomenon shows that the world of art, especially the art of painting, is still considered a mere business. This business is complex because there is no parameter, pattern, system, information reference or standard by which price is set.

The gallery cares about the business aspects, but does not attempt to build its infrastructure. They are generally concerned only with profit, not with creativity. Many galleries refuse young artists' creations because they consider them unsaleable.

So, many young artists have turned to alternative galleries, which can accommodate their creations, such as Cemeti Gallery in Yogyakarta, or Lontar Gallery, Cemara Gallery and Milenium Gallery in Jakarta.

In the future, this problem will threaten the business because art lovers or people who like buying artwork as investments will be confused and feel insecure about the asset. Because paintings are still considered the prima dona for business, appreciation of other arts will not develop. What will develop is a commercial ideology, with a word parody of "just do it" (or "only money"). Quantity of work will come before creativity. More negative consequences will have to be watched out for.